"One traditional control used to mitigate such an attack is to keep systems patched. Microsoft has stopped supporting patch development and deployment for Microsoft’s Windows XP operating system.

“Because our next-generation security platform protects networks at the application, user and content levels, it can keep malware from infecting Windows XP systems without the need for continuous software patching.

"In other words, if you’re using Windows XP on a network protected by Palo Alto Networks, you’re covered.”

According to Howard, Palo Alto Networks offers customers "multiple ways" of protecting against potentially unpatched vulnerabilities in the OS and the exploits used against those vulnerabilities, including:

* discovery of unknown exploits with WildFire, which will continue to run Windows XP in a cloud-based malware analysis environment to execute suspicious files delivered over the network